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| KILLEEN - Robert Bero has been touting the speed of Bobby Taylor and Andre Davis since the beginning of two-a-days last month. Both proved the head coach's assessment true Friday night as the Longview Lobos captured a 21-9 season-opening decision over Killeen's Kangaroos.
It was the Lobos' first victory over Killeen, having lost once and settled for a pair of ties in the three previous meetings. The most recent game occurred in the 1980 with the Kangaroos winning 13-0. Taylor electrified the crowd at Leo Buckley Stadium with a 96-yard kickoff return in the first half and Davis tallied twice in the fourth quarter, including a 61-yard touchdown run to pace the victory. After dominating Longview in the first half, Killeen's run-and-shoot offense found the yardage a little tougher as the Lobo defense stymied the Kangaroo onslaught. Longview gave up only 38 yards on the ground in the final two quarters. The Kangaroos had complied 209 in the first half alone. Trailing 9-7, Davis took the handoff from quarterback Jason Dodson, broke through the right side of the line and raced down the right sideline to put the Lobos ahead 13-9. The drive covered 72 yards in only two plays. Longview then went for the two-point conversion with Davis pounding into the end zone for a six point advantage with 7:11 left in the contest. Killeen, however, on the following possession quickly marched the ball back into the Lobos' end of the field. But the Longview defense stiffened as the Kangaroos reached the 40-yard line. A five-yard sack of quarterback Billy Spiller by defense end Nick Richardson forced Killeen into a fourth-and-11 play. With time running out, the Kangaroos went for the first down marker on fourth down, but a heavy rush by linebacker Mike Reedy forced Spiller's pass attempt to fall incomplete as the Lobos took over on downs. Longview then iced the game with a 59-yard, 9-play drive as Davis scored for the second time from 4 yards out with three seconds remaining. Davis, who ended the first half with only 42 yards, finished with a game-high 149 on 19 carries. The junior tailback did not start the game, but carried an otherwise sluggish Lobo offense. Killeen out-gained Longview in total yards 342-244. The Lobos did rebound in the second half for 181, all coming on the ground. The game did match a host of speedsters with Davis and Taylor for Longvie wand Killeen's spiller, Dion Marion and Charles West. Taylor is a two-time state gold medal winner for the Lobos' 1600 meter relay. The three Killeen players combined to set a national age-group record in the 400 at the National Junior olympics this summer. Longview's young defense was quickly tested to start the game but yielded only nine first-half points as Killeen held onto a two-point advantage. The Kangaroo offense rumbled for 265 yards in the opening 24 minutes. The Sophomore Marion was the catalyst with 100 yards on only 12 carries. He finished with 122 yards on 19 carries. Killeen took its halftime lead as Steve Kirkpatrick lined a 35-yard field goal between the uprights with one second left in the second quarter. He had earlier missed from 22 yards. Longview took a 7-6 lead on Taylor's 96-yard kickoff return. It saved an otherwise poor first-half offense as the Lobos managed only 63 yards and just four first downs. The Kangaroos finally broke onto the scoreboard after suffering a pair of crucial fumbles and a missed field goal. Spiller culminated a 75-yard, 7-play drive with a nine-yard scramble up the middle on a bust play. However, Kirkpatrick, who clearly had his troubles in the opening half, had his point after blocked by Reedy. Twice, Killeen took the ball inside the Lobo 20-yard line in the first quarter only to be turned away on a fumble at the 15 and a Kirkpatrick 22-yard field goal attempt that missed wide to the left. Longview's deepest penetration of the opening half was to the Kangaroo 25. But the Lobos failed to convert on fourth down. Longview hosts Fort Worth Trimble Tech in its home opener next Friday night (7:30) at Lobo Stadium. It was the first of five consecutive home dates. |